


The Monster Lives in this One

by Gamermom



Category: Supernatural
Genre: M/M, Pumpkin Ale, Sam is totally there, ghoul!cas, we just didn't see him yet
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-12-24 17:08:13
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,606
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21102977
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Gamermom/pseuds/Gamermom
Summary: Castiel is a ghoul who longs for a home and connections. He literally stumbles on a chance when he finds the corpse of Jimmy Novak and assumes his (non)life.Based on a ficlet by Jhoom. https://jhoomwrites.tumblr.com/post/187271859442/how-about-a-ghoulcas-coffee-shop-by-the-way-i





	The Monster Lives in this One

Castiel was hungry. A deep, gnawing hungry that no normal food could satisfy. That hunger made him desperate. Desperate enough to be here, breaking into a morgue in the middle of night while hunters were in town. The lock popped and the back door to the funeral home swung open. Castiel tucked his lock picking set into the pocket of his trim beige trench coat. He pushed the long chestnut lock that had fallen free of its braid back behind his ear and headed down the stairs.

The morgue smelled of formaldehyde and disinfectant. It was dark and while Castiel did not need light to see exactly, he did need some to read. He used a tiny pen light to read over the paperwork stored at the desk. It only took him a moment to find what he was looking for. The body of an indigent man, likely a victim of the opium epidemic that plagued this community. He had been identified but his next of kin, a cousin, had refused the body, and the expenses that came from burial.

Just as Castiel had finished falsifying the paperwork to show that the body had already been incinerated, the lights flipped on startling him. Castiel spun around to see a lovely woman in a white lab coat standing at the top of the stairs.

“What are you doing?” she demanded.

“Please don’t hurt me,” Castiel begged, “I will leave right now,” he promised as he turned towards the door. The woman moved to intercept him.

“Either explain yourself right now or I am calling the police!”

Castiel’s already pale skin blanched more. Involving the police would surely summon hunters as well and he would be forced to flee everything he had here. He held out his hands as a sign of surrender.

“I am not a threat. I don’t want to hurt anyone. Please just let me leave,” he begged the other woman.

The mortician, because that was clearly who she was, glanced at the paperwork in from of Castiel.

“What do you want with Mr. Jacobs body? Not even his own family wants him,” she remarked.

“Umm, I know. You take in indigent bodies and burn them even when the city runs out of funds to pay you. You are also known to help low income people bury their dead cheaply. I am just helping you, taking this body off your hands. It costs you hundreds to run the incinerator.”

“And finding the corpse of a homeless man in the garbage or woods would help me how?”

“Oh no, I promise you, no one would ever find it,” Castiel eagerly explained.

The perplexed and frightened look on her face morphed to shrewd understanding. “A beautiful woman breaks into my morgue and tries to steal the partially decomposed body of a homeless man. Maybe I shouldn’t be asking why you want the body and instead ask what you are?”

Castiel moved almost faster than the human eye could track, trying to make it to the door. But the woman also moved impossibly fast to intercept him. Her eyes flashed golden and long claws appeared.

“Kitsune,” Castiel declared.

“And you are a ghoul if I am not mistaken.” Castiel nodded his head. He had not expected this turn of events.

“You know it is funny. People don’t really mind that their family members will be eaten by worms, bugs, and bacteria, but tell them it will be used to feed a sentient, feeling being, and they get all freaked out. That’s why I focus on the unclaimed bodies. Your right, I do a lot of charity work and the only way I can afford to do so is by charging a fee to those who need an easy, ethical food option.”

“You sell bodies?” Castiel asked.

“Sometimes. More often my clients need a specific body part that I harvest fresh for them. I am respectful of religious rites if I am aware of them. I admit that when I have an order for meat, I use the unclaimed bodies.”

“Seems like we both have the same idea,” Castiel said as he moved back into the room and away from the door, “Perhaps we can work out an arrangement. I am Castiel, by the way.”

The kitsune put her claws away and seems to relax some. “I’m Amy Pond. I vet all my clients, I don’t want anyone causing issues, and honestly ghouls cause issues.”

“How so?” Castiel asked.

“Well if you eat him you will take his form, right?” Castiel nodded. “Well I can’t have a man I was supposed to have cremated walking around town!”

Castiel laughed lightly, “I keep bones of my favorite forms. All I have to do is suck on one for a minute and I will shift back.”

Amy nodded. “Well I think we can work something out. It costs me about $200 to run the oven and cremate a body. I will sell you Mr. Jacobs for that amount. It off sets my costs. But you need to break down your own body. Can you use a bone saw?”

Castiel nods. “Good. Now you can’t make any trouble in town. Stay quiet and cause no harm. Where is this form from?”

Castiel looked down at his rather lovely body. “I found her in a graveyard when I was young. I loved her smile. According to her tombstone she was a 19th century schoolteacher.”

“That’s sweet. Okay well as long as you don’t take the form of anyone in town, we should be good.” Amy observed Castiel’s darting eyes and cocked an eyebrow. “What?”

“Do you know Jimmy Novak?” Castiel asked.

“No, should I?”

“No one else did. Jimmy lived about 15 minutes outside of town in a cabin in the woods. I came across his body about a month and a half ago. He had fallen down his ravine and broken his neck. There was nothing to be done, so I had a good meal. I found his wallet and address. I figured I would check out the house and see if he had anyone who would miss him. If he did I would disguise the meal as an animal scavenging and make sure they found the body. Closure is important. But if he didn’t, I could feed on the whole body. I was not prepared for what I found.

“Jimmy lived in the coziest cabin. It was small, just a main room and a sleeping loft. A little kitchen was tucked under the loft and a bathroom was off the loft. It also had a little computer workstation. It turns out Jimmy worked from home. He had never met his co-workers, just messaged them. The work was easy, I could do it. His parents were dead, and he had no siblings. He rarely went to town and had no friends. In every sense he was a ghost in his own life.”

“Why would anyone live like that?” Amy couldn’t help but wonder.

“Guilt. A couple of years ago he was driving home at night and fell asleep behind the wheel. His wife, Amelia and daughter Claire died on contact. Jimmy never recovered. He sold his house, built this cabin and hid away from life. He hid Amelia and Claire away too. Everything of theirs was hidden away in boxes.”

“But you went through them. You took over his life,” said Amy.

“Basically, but I actually use it. I unpacked the boxes, hung up family photos. I found Jimmy’s old rosery and I say it every day for him and his family. I light a candle for them on Sundays. I am honoring the dead as best I can, but yes, this life is so nice. I have a job, and I am making friends. I could be normal if I could just find out how to feed, and then you are here. Selling bodies. It is everything I could ever want.”

Amy nods and hands Castiel the bone saw. “You know how to use that?” she asked. Castiel smiled. “I learned it on my daddy’s knee. But I don’t have cash on me.”

“That’s okay. Breakdown the body and pack it up. Jimmy can come by tomorrow with a donation. I trust you.”

Castiel grinned so wide that his delicate features were overwhelmed. This would work. He could actually keep this stolen life.

* * *

For all of Castiel’s big talk about living Jimmy’s life to the fullest, in truth he was not much better than the dead man. He did go more, but as he had never really lived as a human before, he had yet to be successful at making a friend. He thought he had for a minute there, but with further research he realized that people in the service industry were paid to be nice and that it was considered rude or even harassment to try to form personal bonds with them while they were working. Which was a shame considering the beautiful green-eyed man who served him coffee each morning or the incredibly kind giant who helped him at the hardware store. He didn’t really talk to people who were not working. Even his online co-workers were in fact working, as was he. Although Castiel did feel that they were friendlier and more interested in him as a person than was strictly necessary for their collective jobs. His research did show that work friends were a socially acceptable connection and Castiel made conscious effort to engage his coworkers. He also strove to get out of the cozy cabin at least daily.

Most days he jogged a few miles to a busy coffee shop were the green-eyed man worked. Dean his name tag said. But today it had rained and Castiel had wanted to try something else. His co-workers (work friends?) had asked about Friday night plans. Apparently, Friday nights were a traditional time to socialize at a bar, club or otherwise engage in ‘nightlife’. So Castiel was heading starting up Jimmy’s car and driving to the local watering hole.

The bar was poorly light and fairly crowded. There did not appear to be a hostess so Castiel grabbed a seat at one of the few free tables. He felt slightly out of place in Jimmy’s navy suit and tan trench coat. Most people were wearing leather, jeans or plaid. He wondered how one procured a drink in a place such as this. He saw many people around the bar, perhaps he should order there, like the counter at McDonalds. But he was afraid that he would lose his table if he left. He was saved from his dilemma when a pretty woman with a blond ponytail stopped at his table.

“What can I get you for you sugar?” she asked.

“A beer please,” Castiel had practiced this.

“Sure, what kind?”

“Kind?” Castiel had not practiced this.

“Yeah, we have 12 on tap and a lot more by the bottle,” the waitress clarified.

All of Castiel’s instincts were screaming at him to run. After all that is what ghouls did. They were scavengers that used their speed to evade and hide from humans. But Castiel was being human so he did what he had observed other humans do. He smiled and said, “I don’t know. I don’t really drink beer. What do you recommend?”

“Well you could always do a bud light. That is most popular beer we serve,” she responded.

“Then I will have that,” Castiel said with confidence.

“Course they taste like piss water,” she added.

“Then I will not have that,” Castiel amended. He did not want to have piss water. “What do you drink.”

“We have a pumpkin ale on tap that I think is really tasty. But lots of guys think it is to frufru.”

“I would rather have a frufru tasty beer than a popular one that tastes like piss,” Castiel declared. The woman smiled at him in a way that did not seemed paid.

“Can I get you any food, the grill is open, and we have great burgers.”

“Oh yes, I enjoy burgers. Do have bacon and cheese as well?”

The waitress continued to smile, “Course we do sugar. I’ll get you the grilled onions too, trust me you will love them.”

“Thank you,” Castiel responded with a smile of his own. He did not care that she was paid to be nice, this was a pleasant interaction and he believed she had enjoyed it as well. The waitress left but returned promptly with pumpkin ale. She waited for Castiel to try it and confirm that it was indeed ‘tasty’.

Despite how crowded the bar was, Castiel felt alone. A man approached once but he just wanted Castiel’s extra chairs. His waitress popped by a few times after she delivered the food, but it was clear she was busy and could not chat. Castiel was startled out of his thoughts when a beer was set in front of him.

“Oh, I am sorry, I did not order this,” Castiel said as he looked up at man delivering the beer and was surprised to see the green-eyed barista from the coffee shop.

“Yeah, I know man, I bought it for you. Pumpkin Ale right? That is what Molly said you were drinking,” Dean (Castiel remembered his name was Dean).

“Umm yes. Do you work here too? Are you taking over my server’s, Molly’s? table?” Castiel asked.

Dean laughed a little awkwardly. “No man, I don’t work here. Asked your server what you are drinking and then bought you a beer. Haven’t you ever had someone buy you a drink?”

“No, I have not. I did not realize this was a thing people did. Why did you do this?”

“Well I recognized you from the coffee shop, you looked a little lonely and since I am not working I thought I would come say hi, maybe you might want company,” Dean explained.

“Oh yes,” Castiel responded rather eagerly, “I would greatly enjoy your company. I have been trying to make friends, but I have not been very successful. Just finding people to talk to, who are not paid to offer a service is highly difficult. Tell me more about buying people drinks. If I wanted to speak with someone can I just buy them a drink and they will talk to me?”

Dean snagged a chair from a near by table and sat down. “I mean depends on the person. Some people, especially ladies who don’t want to be hit on your drink might be refused. Other people might take the drink but not want to speak to you. If you are already talking to a guy and offer a drink that can get you into a deep conversation, someone to keep you company while you drink. Walking up to a person with a drink is pretty bold and most people would assume you were hitting on them.”

Castiel blinked, “Oh. Are you hitting on me?”

“I’m trying to man, but you make it hard,” Dean answered with a wry smile, “Honestly though if you are just looking for some company, someone to talk, that is cool too man.”

“Oh….Umm… I am not sure I have ever been hit on, but I am not opposed to the idea,” Castiel answered, this was nothing he had expected or prepared for.

Dean smiled, “Hi I’m Dean.”

“Yes I know,” Castiel responded, “From you nametag at the café.”

“Aww man you are killing me. Now you tell me your name.”

“Oh, yes of course. My name is Jimmy Novak.”

“Nice to meet you Jimmy.”

**Author's Note:**

> So I did have more planned but I ran out of time. I am not sure if I will continue this story, which is why I marked it as complete.


End file.
